Making a Wish
by EmeliaHarding
Summary: After misjudging a clue, Ruby works herself into a spot of trouble after trying to identify mayor Mills' admirer only to find herself being rescued by the one and only woman who more or less caused her mess. Inspired by Waiting for Superman by Daughtry. Written for becksthewolf (tumblr).


Wake up, get dressed, work in the diner, close the diner, go home, go to sleep, wake up and repeat the whole boring process day after day after day after day.

Storybrooke is possibly the dreariest town in all of Maine; at least that's what Ruby Lucas would gather after never having been anywhere else for as long as she can possibly remember.

The waitress releases an extended sigh as the coffee finishes growing warm, ready to pour for the same old faces that offer as much entertainment as growing grass.

"Don't forget to bring doctor Whale his donut." Granny reminds in passing.

Ruby tries to smile at her grandmother, managing only a weak purse of her lips.

"He only eats them every single day," she mutters. "but no, Ruby forgets _everything_."

"Miss Lucas? Ruby?"

"Huh?"

Ruby spins narrowly on her heel, coming face to face with the one even mildly interest person in their town, the mayor, Regina Mills.

"Madame Mayor!" she exclaims, silently thanking herself for not being clumsy enough to slosh hot coffee across the woman's blouse. "Sorry."

"For what, dear? You're not the only one who daydreams." the mayor chuckles, sending a wide smile in the waitress' direction.

Ruby blushes, clicking the toes of her heels together embarrassedly.

It's true that the mayor of Storybrooke has quite the temper and a series of awards for her snark, not to mention a bad side where just one look could melt kidney's, but it's also true that as Henry has gotten older the woman has grown much softer; now she only insults Ruby twice a week.

"What can I do for you today, Miss Mills?"

"Regina," the darker haired woman smiles. "I just wanted to pay for my meal."

Ruby takes the offered money, their fingers grazing as usual.

"Have a lovely day, Ruby." Regina grins.

""Hm, yeah, you too." Ruby mumbles, not bothering to look up as Regina's heels click out the door and onto the pavement.

Regina Mills eats in Granny's diner every day of the week, on the weekends she brings Henry, and on the days that she can't make it away from her office she calls Granny and requests for Ruby to bring the order to her. Essentially Ruby sees the mayor every single day, that's why her next discovery leaves the waitress both confused and intrigued.

A neatly folded piece of paper falls from the small stack of bills that Regina had handed her, fluttering down onto the countertop. The waitress reaches for it, ready to unfold the scrap and peek inside before Granny chastises her from the next room.

"Ruby! Get a move on girl, the customer's aren't going to serve themselves."

"Okay Granny." Ruby mumbles, stuffing the paper into the pocket of her shorts to look at later.

...

Ruby packs up the diner chair by chair, wiping down each of the tables with the same strokes that she uses every night. It's not until after she's counted and packed away the money in the till that she is allowed a moment to remember the paper in her pocket.

"Almost done packing up?" Granny calls.

"In a minute!"

And for a few seconds that the paper rests in her hand, Ruby considers that she shouldn't look at it, but in those few seconds curiosity gets the better of her; a curiosity that only doubles once the content of the paper is revealed.

Neatly scrawled across the line creased page is a phone number, preceded by the equally neatly written: call me.

"Fuck," she mumbles, staring at every cursive letter and number with a quizzical eye. "fuck." she repeats again, setting the paper on the counter.

Regina Mills has a love interest, Regina _fucking_ Mills, mayor of Storybrooke, has an incredibly suspicious phone number tucked away in her handbag. Only now Ruby has the number, Ruby has the number and she can't help but be a little jealous of the other woman.

"Unbelieveable…" she mumbles, shaking her head.

Regina Mills is a beautiful woman, Ruby knows that and on more than one occasion has even taken the time to appreciate that fact herself, but Ruby also wonders how it is that she didn't notice the mayor's admirer before now. Ruby would also be lying if she didn't admit that she was more than a little jealous.

Doctor Whale? No, definitely not, but he definitely flirts with every woman that crosses his path so it wouldn't surprise the waitress if the scrawl is possibly his. Sheriff Graham, maybe? More likely than Whale as it's obvious that he has a soft spot for the towns mayor, though Ruby knows that Graham's writing is a complete mess after having been on the receiving end of all too many parking it crosses Ruby's mind that Regina's admirer could well be a woman such as Mary-Margaret (this idea is quickly squashed down as Mary-Margaret wasn't even present in the diner today and the note didn't appear to have been floating around the mayor's bag for an extended period of time), or even the towns local psychiatrist, Archie. And then Ruby's mind is blank again.

Ruby thinks harder on her way back to the inn with Granny, unable to conjure any conceivable option for Regina's now not-so-secret admirer. The thought drives her insane as she lays in bed, laced with feelings of _"Why not me?"_ until finally Ruby is packing a bag.

...

Ruby's head hurts, pounding actually, Ruby's head hurts and some fuzzy far away voice is trying to talk to her.

"Ruby? Ruby, are you okay?"

As a hand is placed on her shoulder she groans deeply, bringing a heavy arm to her forehead.

"Gina?" she mumbles, lifting heavy eyelids to catch a glimpse of the mayor.

"Thank god." the woman breathes. "I was so worried."

"Huh?"

"You crashed, Ruby, don't you remember?"

The waitress shakes her head, the last thing she remembers being climbing into her car to leave Storybrooke.

"Can you walk?" Regina asks her.

"Yeah." Ruby guesses, swinging her legs from the car.

She stands hesitantly, stumbling against Regina's chest awkwardly as she attempts to regain her footing.

"Stay still," the mayor breathes, half resting Ruby against the mostly undamaged vehicle and half supporting her, as she brings a hand to the woman's forehead. "looks like you're going to need some stitches, I'm taking you to doctor Whale. I don't know if you could have a concussion." she assesses, beginning to steer Ruby towards her car.

"What're you doing out here anyway?" Ruby hiccups, allowing her weight to rest against Regina's shoulder.

"I come out here to think sometimes." she admits quietly. "Watch your step."

Ruby shakes her head as she's sat in the passenger seat of Regina's mercedes, attempting to struggle away as the mayor buckles her in.

"Mm okay, it's just a bump." she mumbles.

"That as it may be, Miss Lucas, I'd rather be safe than sorry when it comes to your wellbeing."

"You need a cape." the waitress giggles as Regina's hand cups her face again.

"I think that would be unnecessary." the mayor blushes, shutting the door.

Ruby pokes at the bruise on her forehead curiously as Regina rounds the car, climbing into the drivers side just as Ruby winces.

"Don't do that," she scolds gently. "you'll make it worse."

And that's the last thing Regina says to her for a while as they drive back into town, only stealing glances at the brunette in her passenger seat to assess her rather liquid like movements.

"Ruby," she begins tentatively as they approach the lights of Main street. "where exactly were you going?"

"Anywhere but here." Ruby laughs easily, running her fingertip in swirls across the mayor's car window.

"You don't like Storybrooke?"

"You _do_ like Storybrooke?"

"Most days," Regina blushes. "but it can be rather-"

"Boring?" Ruby giggles. "Storybrooke: the town where everyone's in love but you and where there's only one place to eat and everyone orders the same thing every day and everything runs smoother than the pristine roads, sound about right, madame mayor?"

"Call me Regina," the older woman reminds, not exactly sure of how to reply to Ruby's statement.

"Oh!"

"Oh?"

"I was out there because of you." Ruby remembers, shifting in her seat.

"Me?"

"Yeah," Ruby grins, excitedly. "because of this." she says, producing the now slightly crumpled square of folded paper.

Regina blushes upon recognising the item, attempting not to back into the car now parked behind her as she straightens up.

"I must admit," Ruby flushes. "the quest to guess your secret admirer made me very curious - don't worry, I won't ask you who this number's from - but then it made me frustrated because I wanted an admirer and so that's when I thought about leaving Storybrooke so that I could find one on my own, and now here we are and I guess you know the rest." she laughs.

"Honestly," Regina mumbles. "I'm getting worried that you've hit your head a little harder than I thought."

And then the mayor is sliding out of her car and back around to Ruby's side to help her out.

"Whaddaya' mean?" the brunette hiccups, resting against the offered shoulder as they walk to the hospital doors.

"We need a doctor!" Regina orders, ignoring Ruby's question as she demands Doctor Whale and a private room.

"Gina?" Ruby presses as she's lowered into a seat. "My head is fine, just a little cut and bump, see?"

The waitress runs her fingers along the gash, coming away with a bloodied hand and a slightly uneasy look.

"You might need to distract her." doctor Whale tells the mayor as he enters the room with his equipment.

Regina nods, hesitantly taking a seat beside the brunette who looks more worried by the minute.

"Ruby," she begins. "who's phone number do you think is on that piece of paper?"

"Idunno," Ruby sniffles as doctor Whale prods at her injury. "that was part of the mystery."

"This is going to hurt." the doctor warns, taking out a needle and his stitches.

"Ruby, look at me," the mayor urges gently, moving her hand into Ruby's lap so that she may take the woman's shaking two between her own. "did it ever occur to you that the number was mine?"

"What? No- ow!" she sniffles, holding Regina's hand tighter as doctor Whale begins stitching up her wound. "That doesn't make any sense. Why would someone give you your own number?"

"They weren't," Regina laughs. " _I_ was giving it to someone. Giving it to you wasn't a mistake, Ruby." the mayor admits, ignoring the presence of doctor Whale.

"But why would you give _me_ your num- oh…"

And then Ruby's eyes are wide, and a few seconds after that she's laughing even though doctor Whale is trying to steady her face as not to skew the next few stitches.

"You've got to stay still," Regina smiles, smoothing her thumb over the back of Ruby's hand until she calms. "however laughable my apparent attempt at courting you may be, I need you to stay still so that your face isn't irreparably damaged." she jokes.

"Why me?" Ruby asks her, squeezing Regina's hand again as another stitch is pulled through her forehead.

"Because you're the reason I come into the diner every day, as wonderful as your lasagne is," she smirks. "I come to see you, and when I can't come to see you I have Granny send you to me." the mayor admits earnestly, running her thumb in circles over Ruby's knuckles as the doctor begins another stitch. "I like you Ruby and I notice you every day, I'm just sorry it took me so long to speak up."

And then Ruby is smiling, even as doctor Whale pulls the final stitch through before standing up to leave.

"I'll get her something for the pain so that she can go home and sleep, she doesn't have a concussion so she'll be fine to get some rest."

"Thank you, doctor."

And then they're alone again and Regina is still holding Ruby's hands between her own, and when Ruby looks at her she blushes.

"When?"

"Pardon?"

"When did you start- you know…" the waitress mumbles.

"Months ago," Regina smiles sheepishly. "when I woke up one morning and I wished that someone would come into my life - and I know how childish that sounds - when I wished that there might be someone to make this town a little more interesting for me, there you were. I was walking down Main street and there you were, sweeping the front of the diner, and you looked up at me and you smiled and I saw something that I hadn't seen before."

"Wow." Ruby mumbles, her eyes fluttering sleepily.

"Come on," Regina soothes, urging the brunette to her feet again. "let's get you home."

"I wish I'd noticed sooner too." Ruby mumbles sleepily.

And that's almost how the night ends for both women, with Regina taking Ruby home and tucking her in along with Ruby's promise not to try and leave town again as long as Regina takes her to dinner within the week; a wish the mayor knows that she can happily grant.


End file.
